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Crayons
IHQ Med Bay The new Med Bay is large enough to house all the wounded that could result from battles against the Autobots. Near the entrance, there are a series of benches for patients awaiting treatment. Advanced medtables line the sides of the room in symetrical rows while surgery is located within the central area. In the ceiling are several crane mechanisms to assist medics in moving larger Decepticons, each one highly articulated and built to withstand the strain of lifting even Devastator. The room's floor, walls, and ceiling are fitted with forceshield generators to contain those that are too injured to return to duty, possible contaminants, and also are set to automatically engage to protect the room from combat damage. The room is immaculately clean, carries a glossy shine, and always smells of disinfectants, giving off the air of a proper medical bay. To the rear are the airlock doors that lead to the Laboratory. Room Contents: Gumby Medic Med-Comm Medical Rules Obvious exits: East leads to IHQ Laboratory. West leads to IHQ Central Chamber. Bonecrusher arrives from the IHQ Central Chamber to the west. Bonecrusher has arrived. Bonecrusher asks the Gumby Medic for refueling. The medic complies. Gumby Medic refuels Bonecrusher. Catechism asks the Gumby Medic for refueling. The medic complies. Gumby Medic refuels Catechism. Having walked back to the med bay, Bonecrusher asks Catechism, "You studied that stuff, yeah? Did you understand it?" Catechism hesitates. She replies, "Of course I studied it. I said that I would!" Understand? No, she doesn't understand, but she's not going to say it. It all seems bass-ackwards to her, so she's just Bonecrusher replies, "Uh. So what did you make of..." and gives Catechism a question about something she, according to herself, has studied. He said there'd be a pop quiz, didn't he? Bonecrusher has picked a chemistry question. He has asked why alkali metals are so reactive. Catechism answers, "Uhm... they lose valence electrons easily. So they... react more." She has memorised this, She couldn't really explain why this makes them more reactive or why a demolitionist should care, though. Hey, Catechism did remember something! Bonecrusher grins with something that approximates encouraging teacherly pride. "Yeah, it..." and he adds some explanations before moving to the next question. Catechism listens to Bonecrusher's explanations carefully. They do help a bit, just hearing what she's read put another way. Also, Bonecrusher is pretty good about using little words. Sometimes, she wonders if little words all that he knows, but Decepticons were never known for their charity. At his question, she winces and thinks. Catechism repeats aloud, "Why are oxidisers important? Ah... uhm... oxidisers. They put oxygen in stuff, and... and... and... you need oxygen to make things burn." Indeed, that's what you need oxygen for! And you need an oxygen destroyer to get rid of Godzilla, but that's a whole other subject. Besides, if the Decepticons will ever have a Godzilla problem, they could just sic Cuddles on him. Or Trypticon. Bonecrusher gives Catechism some more explanations in small words, and some more questions to make sure she's understood things. Bonecrusher's questions will, eventually, make it clearer that Catechism doesn't understand much. She just uses brute force memorisation to get by, and while she has the facts down cold, conceptual questions trip her up. Bonecrusher notices as much, eventually. Normally not being a teacher by trade, he knows little about how to make a brutish Conehead grasp concepts. Still, he won't give up now that he's already started. Catechism is now a Constructicon project in more than one way, and Bonecrusher, in all his stubbornness, is bent on making that project succeed. Thus, he pulls up textbook pages and diagrams on a console once again, going over things with Catechism and hoping for a breakthrough. It's, in some way, not too different from demolitions work - Bonecrusher has to figure out which parts of the structure are the key to bringing the "building" of Catechism's lack-of-understanding down. Catechism comments idly, "I like the pictures. They're easier than reading." She's trained as a Scout. She knows what to look for when she's looking at things. Catechism also seems to better understand things when pictures are involved. Catechism stares at Bonecrusher. Crayons? She starts, "What are..." ...and she trails off. Too much new information. She'll find out later. The Seeker sits down to reread her notes while Bonecrusher works. Bonecrusher works on crayons! He heats wax - or the closest thing that can be found among the supplies - and mixes it with pigments. The result is poured into molds (yes, there is something at hand that can serve as molds, the Constructicons keep everything well-stocked), and left to cool. Once Bonecrusher is satisfied with the quality of the crayons, there comes the other part of the set - the colouring book. Fortunately, the med bay also has a printer, normally used by Hook or Scrapper to print out plans. Bonecrusher sits down at the console again and comes up with some nice educational diagrams. Each of them has a complementing text, along with instructions for colouring. When Bonecrusher is satisfied with the materials, he prints them all out on sheets of plastic. Catechism looks up from her reading to stare blankly at Bonecrusher some more. She squints, and tone sceptical, she asks, "Bonecrusher, is that going to explode?" It's hard to tell whether she wants a 'yes' or a 'no'. Bonecrusher answers her, "No, it isn't. It's a colouring book that doesn't explode." It's an idea, though - how about a colouring book that does explode? Maybe Bonecrusher will let Catechism build one as her homework, once she's gotten ahead in her studies. Right now, he hands her the printouts along with the crayons. "You take these crayons, and you sit down and colour. It says how on here, but if you need any help, ask me." Catechism can figure out how to sit down and colour. She's just boggling that she has to do it. The Seeker works quite carefully. She's not Hook when it comes to colouring, but Hook would know enough to be insulted that he was colouring, anyway. Catechism doesn't. Bonecrusher lets Catechism colour, returning to his own work.